"Alternative" netizens were already "alternative" before they became netizens

Myth: The rise of socio-political websites with non-mainstream views created the increase in anti-People’s Action Party voting sentiment. Such an arrow of causation is not supported by data. What probably happened: The rise in frustration and education that led to the rise of anti-PAP sentiment, also created an audience for socio-political sites. “Are they looking for [something that] the alternative sites of the internet are, and that the mainstream media are not?” asked Tan Tarn How, a political researcher at the Institute of Policy Studies, at a seminar last week. The survey which this seminar centred around, also had another finding consistent with the above. Hardly anyone consumes these sites to the exclusion of mainstream media; nearly all of these “alternative” netizens simultaneously consume mainstream media. Yet they continue to hold different views. 1,092 Singapo...